SERVICES

Tuesday March 25, 2009

Liverpool's On The Move...

Portsmouth 2 Everton 1

Peter Crouch scored twice as Portsmouth came from behind to beat Everton at Fratton Park and breathe new life into their battle for League survival. Leighton Baines had fired the visitors into an early lead with a well-taken free-kick.
However, Crouch powered in a header to draw Pompey level on 22 minutes, and struck again from close range late in the second half to secure a vital victory for the relegation battlers.

Blackburn Rovers 1 West Ham United 1

Substitute Keith Andrews salvaged a point for relegation-threatened Blackburn Rovers at Ewood Park but Sam Allardyce's men will reflect on a missed opportunity to put more space between themselves and the drop zone.
Andrews lashed home a right-footed shot from a tight angle in the 51st minute to cancel out Mark Noble's first-half opener for West Ham and set up a grandstand finish by the home side.
But despite pinning the visitors back in their own half for long periods, chances went begging for Benni McCarthy, Jason Roberts and Morten Gamst Pedersen while El-Hadji Diouf had two efforts disallowed for offside.

Manchester City 1 Middlesbrough 0

Ryan Shawcross' 84th-minute header earned Stoke City a victory at home to Middlesbrough and provided a huge boost to their relegation battle.
The defender escaped his marker to deflect Rory Delap's long throw into the far corner of the net.
Stoke had carved out the best of few chances created and the result increases the pressure on next-bottom Boro, who have now failed to score in seven of their last nine league matches and have not won away from home since 9th November.

Fulham 2 Manchester United 0

Fulham breathed fresh life into the title race with a sensational 2-0 victory against nine-man Manchester United at Craven Cottage.
Danny Murphy put Fulham ahead in the 17th minute when he converted from the penalty spot after Paul Scholes was sent off for handling a header from Bobby Zamora.
Substitute Zoltan Gera then completed a fabulous afternoon for the Cottagers when he hooked home a cross by Andrew Johnson three minutes from time.
United were then reduced to nine men when substitute Wayne Rooney was dismissed for a second bookable offence seconds later.
It was United's second successive defeat following their 4-1 home mauling by Liverpool last weekend and the first time the champions and league leaders had suffered back-to-back losses in the league since April 2005.

Tottenham Hotspur 1 Chelsea 0

Chelsea missed a golden opportunity to close the gap at the top of the League as Luka Modric's winner helped inflict Guus Hiddink's first defeat since arriving in England.
A suspect vehicle near White Hart Lane delayed the start, meaning the visitors kicked off knowing leaders Manchester United were struggling at Fulham, but they failed to take advantage.
Victory would have taken them within a point of United but Hiddink's men were frustrated by a Tottenham side who have been transformed since Harry Redknapp's arrival five months ago, with Modric striking the winner just after the interval.

West Bromwich Albion 1 Bolton Wanderers 1

West Bromwich Albion slipped nearer the relegation trapdoor despite an own goal from Danny Shittu denying their former manager Gary Megson a triumphant first return to the Hawthorns.
Matt Taylor's second half goal - his eighth of the season - looked to have earned Bolton Wanderers a first away win in four months.
But with eight minutes remaining Shittu deflected a low Robert Koren drive past Jussi Jaaskelainen for the equaliser.
Albion goalkeeper Scott Carson made several important saves to keep his side in contention. But a point will do little to help Albion's bid to avoid the drop.

Newcastle United 1 Arsenal 3

Michael Owen could not prevent Newcastle United from slipping deep into relegation trouble as Arsenal closed the gap on the top three.
The England striker, who started the match on the bench, arrived just in time to see the Gunners establish a lead at St James' Park, and there was little he or anyone else in a black and white shirt could do about it.
It might have been different had Obafemi Martins converted a 23rd-minute penalty - which Owen would have taken had he started - but Manuel Almunia kept out his spot-kick to provide the platform for a clinical second-half display.
Nicklas Bendtner opened the scoring with a 57th-minute header, but Martins levelled within seconds to give his side hope.
However, goals from Abou Diaby and Samir Nasri within a devastating three-minute period wrapped up a win which saw the Gunners close the gap to Manchester United, Chelsea and Liverpool, and at the same time, put Newcastle into the mire.

Wigan Athletic 1 Hull City 0

Ben Watson scored the only goal of the match as Wigan Athletic missed a host of chances yet still beat struggling Hull City at the JJB Stadium.
It appeared the Latics were heading for their seventh blank in ten League matches, after Mido and Hugo Rodallega had twice each missed opportunities.
But Watson, signed from Crystal Palace in January, scored his second goal in a week with a looping 84th-minute volley.
It ended Wigan's run of back-to-back goalless home fixtures and re-ignited hopes of qualifying for Europe next season as they moved up to seventh.

Manchester City 1 Sunderland 0

Sunderland remain in the thick of the desperate struggle to escape relegation from the League after the bravery of their 10 men went unrewarded as Manchester City.
Micah Richards' second-half header proved enough, with goalkeeper Marton Fulop preventing City increasing their advantage with a string of fine saves near the end in addition to a Robinho penalty save.

Liverpool 5 Aston Villa 0

Liverpool are breathing down United's necks in the title race after destroying fifth-placed Aston Villa.
It was the third stunning Liverpool victory in 12 days, having previously put four past Real Madrid and Manchester United.
The champions' lead is now one point - they also have a match in hand - but Liverpool have now scored more goals than Sir Alex Ferguson's men and have also wiped out their goal-difference advantage.
Steven Gerrard scored a hat-trick with a free-kick and two penalties, with the latter one following the dismissal of goalkeeper Brad Friedel for bringing down Reds striker Fernando Torres.